Herefordshire Council has heavily redacted public reports

2:10pm Thursday 18th October 2012 in News Exclusive By Bill Tanner

HEREFORDSHIRE Council has taken to blacking out whole pages of representations put to licensing reports previously available for public view.

A new premises application by the Steiner Academy at Much Dewchurch represents the most extreme example yet of the redaction imposed on licensing reports over recent months.

Previously, redaction has largely been limited to personal details. But in the case of the Steiner application whole or near-whole pages of public representations were redacted, leaving only single sentences – if anything at all.

The council has said it redacted the representations because – if it did not – it "would be possible to challenge the decision made by councillors on the grounds that they had taken into account issues other than those relating to licensing".

  • See today's Hereford Times for the full story.

Comments(14)

silentbull says...
2:19pm Thu 18 Oct 12

SURPRISE SURPRISE!!!!
The government needs to step in, this is becoming silly ....

...,'but then again' will it just make the hole BIGGER!!!?

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TwoWheelsGood says...
2:43pm Thu 18 Oct 12

This will be costing a fortune in copier toner if the pictures on the front of the HT are anything to go by. More of our our money wasted, but I see the clever Council people already have an answer - next move is no agendas or minutes at all! Here We Can keep you all in the dark. Contemptuous, and probably illegal, but neither will trouble this Council.

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RogerLFC says...
2:58pm Thu 18 Oct 12

With a redaction you simply can't tell what the content is that has been blocked out. All the Council have to do is leave the content visible and say that 3/4 of a page was irrelevant (for instance) and it did not influence their decision. On the one hand we have the Govt. allegedly trying to become more transparent over stuff like expenses (OK I know about the MP's home renting story from today) and then we have the Council doing the exact opposite and becoming more secret! Personally I don't trust the Council to censor a whole page of moans about a Licensing Application and to get it 100% correct re: relevance.

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Lukio says...
4:08pm Thu 18 Oct 12

Bizarre move...I love how clandestine this council is. I'm currently reading a David Icke book and the more I think about it, the more reptillian John Jarvis and the senior leaders of HC are starting to look ;)

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bobby47 says...
4:15pm Thu 18 Oct 12

Im giving up. I've no idea what else we Posters can do to make these idiots change their course.
Is there something we are missing here? Yes the Council can ignore us and dismiss us as fools but they've got Hereford Times Bill Tanner reporting this form of secret democracy. Surely there is some idiot within their ranks that might conclude,'We might be making ourselves unpopular here'.
They couldn't make things worse if their decisions were reliant upon some crinkled old, gap toothed, vagrant, unwashed soothsayer who advised them after reading the signs from the heavens or bloodied phlegm from the sacrifice of the 'Here We Can Hereford
Bull'.

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TwoWheelsGood says...
4:59pm Thu 18 Oct 12

Cannot one of our Independent or IOC Councillors challenge this? Officers throwing their weight around when, after all, it "would be possible to challenge the censoring made by officers on the grounds that they had taken into account issues other than those relating to licensing" This is the thin end of a very fat wedge. We've had the press thrown out of meetings, 'commercial confidentiality', umpteen secret sessions and now this.

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littlewhitebull says...
5:04pm Thu 18 Oct 12

Secrecy and democracy do not make good partners. But it is nothing new for this county. If you look at 'secrecy in local councils' on Google, you will find some very bewildering and disturbing examples throughout the UK. Far too many examples to list here!!
We elect these councillors, pay for the privilege and get very little in return.
I hope this posting is printed in its full form - I'm sure the Hereford Times does not believe in redacting.
Why were my school reports not subjected to redacting?

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bobby47 says...
10:34pm Thu 18 Oct 12

So its finally come to this. Our Council leaders are cold bloodied, insect chewing, egg laying, tongue flicking Reptiles.
I never saw this one coming. I never thought we'd arrive at this conclusion. But, if Lukio is right (For the purposes of any Civil Prosecution these are Lukio's thoughts. Not ours) then these redactors are reptillian and they have their claws on the levers of power.
There's a whole bunch of issues that come with this conclusion. Not least, why didn't they redact Littlewhitebull's School Report. They could have if they wanted to. They obviously have the power. They can do anything. What have they in mind for Littlewhitebull?
I'll not sit back passively and watch them violate Littlewhitebull.

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probono says...
4:44pm Fri 19 Oct 12

Back to the days of Tel Boy and the Secret Seven - no one allowed to attend cabinet meetings even other Councillors. We cannot be going backwards again to those back days of the Lib Dums. Redaction is for the protection of sensitve commercial info, and personal deatails. Needs reporting higher up.

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shunter50 says...
7:26pm Sat 20 Oct 12

nothing surprises me about this dictatorial council any more, they waste our money on numerous follies then try and conceal any information about various decisions that they make. It is about time the electorate stopped the apathy and get out there and vote them off, also the older generation {of which i am one} stopped voting for certain parties because their ancestors always voted for them.It is time for a change in Hereford before these leeches suck the last blood out of what once was a nice city to live in

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littlewhitebull says...
12:51pm Sun 21 Oct 12

bobby47 wrote:
So its finally come to this. Our Council leaders are cold bloodied, insect chewing, egg laying, tongue flicking Reptiles.
I never saw this one coming. I never thought we'd arrive at this conclusion. But, if Lukio is right (For the purposes of any Civil Prosecution these are Lukio's thoughts. Not ours) then these redactors are reptillian and they have their claws on the levers of power.
There's a whole bunch of issues that come with this conclusion. Not least, why didn't they redact Littlewhitebull's School Report. They could have if they wanted to. They obviously have the power. They can do anything. What have they in mind for Littlewhitebull?
I'll not sit back passively and watch them violate Littlewhitebull.
Thanks bobby47 for your wonderful support. I must now confess to the world that I once used the process on one of my own reports!! I redacted and altered a not very impressive report. The outcome was very painful! Those were the days when parents and teachers could take action! Presumably, HCC and other authorities can redact as much as they wish with complete immunity?

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bobby47 says...
7:49pm Sun 21 Oct 12

Littlewhitebull,Yes, the moment you became a redactor and created that redaction is clearly a source of great shame to you but......you were just a lad, a young lad struggling with acne and an overwhelming urge to be with a fully grown woman.
You did this dreadful thing to please Mom and Dad. Loathsome as it was, forgive yourself. We do.

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littlewhitebull says...
7:55pm Mon 22 Oct 12

Thanks bobby47. I feel a great weight lifted off my shoulders after acknowledging my shameful past. Thank for the unconditional forgiveness - I promise never to apply for a job with the council that involves my immense redaction skills - in fact, any job with our council.

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bobby47 says...
9:34pm Mon 22 Oct 12

Excellent news. Water under the bridge. Its all behind you. Yes, your a shameful and loathsome liar who was a redactor but now you aint.
That said, you can be to open when it comes to job applications. I found this out to my cost. Under hobbies I used to report that I was a Toad Sexer, a solitary man who was only interested in the mating habits of our amphibean cousins who frequently splash about in Yazor Brooke. Result? Couldn't get a job. Nobody would touch me untill me Mam and Dad, who were also recovering Toad Sexers said, 'That spawn will be your ruin. Dont tell anyone about it'.
Never looked back. Left it off me CV and since then, some forty years on, I've been kneading dough in a bakery.
Best decision I ever made.

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